Best Ever Albums

Re: BEA ULL #7: NickVolos

NickVolos — Sun, 4 May 2014 09:16:31 GMT

Author: NickVolos

Posted: 05/04/2014 13:16

Sunday May 4th 2014 04:15 pm

Every Sunday…

Beautiful, lazy afternoon… Listening to yesterday’s highlight The Index's eponymous first release. The group is also known as Chicken Every Sunday, quite appropriate on Sunday…

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The Index (The Black Album) by The Index

Great psychedelic infused garage rock. The music may also be cataloged as surf rock, and its lowfi, lazy, aggressive approach is the reason why it also considered proto punk. Currently on John Riley, the 3rd track, a laid back, guitar-driven song. The singer sings in a low, pale voice.. I have to say that the instrumental, jam, psychedelic surf-rock style tracks are my favorites on the album… Here is the complete log from yesterday:

Them - Here Comes The Night
Yardbirds, The - Having a Rave Up
Shadows of Knight, The - Back Door Men
Litter, The - Distortions
Index, The - The Index [The Black Album]
Standells, The - Dirty Water

--------------------------------------
Music Machine, The - (Turn On) The Music Machine
Blues Magoos - Psychedelic Lollipop

I will be switching gears today to something different but closely related at the same time: garage rock revival. Have a good Sunday. 😄

Re: BEA ULL #7: NickVolos

NickVolos — Sat, 3 May 2014 07:33:08 GMT

Author: NickVolos

Posted: 05/03/2014 11:33

Saturday May 3rd 2014 02:30 pm

(Turn On) The Music Machine…

The weekend is finally here… no added inhibitions, errands, work, nothing…just plenty of time to enjoy music (and soccer)… As usual, I am re-listening yesterday’s highlights; at the moment listening to (Turn On) The Music Machine by The Music Machine. The reason that I possibly liked this one more than the rest – as I said, all were excellent – are the heaviness in the vocals, reminding me that of Arthur Lee. Trouble, the 2nd track, and the signer screams: T-R-O-U-B-L-E… Is this the first letter-accented use of a word in rock ‘n’. roll music? Even before G-L-O-R-I-A? Don’t know, but it made me wonder… 😄 There a few covers (Cherry Cherry , Taxman, See See Rider and yes, another version of Hey Joe) and many originals. The group hails from L.A. and they made two albums this being the first. All in all, a good listen and a great find if you like garage rock.

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(Turn On) The Music Machine by The Music Machine

I will be wrapping my 60’s garage rock travels today. Will be moving to garage rock revival first listens tomorrow. Will come back later on the day to wrap today’s log. Have fun in Musicland... 😄

Re: BEA ULL #7: NickVolos

NickVolos — Sat, 3 May 2014 07:10:13 GMT

Author: NickVolos

Posted: 05/03/2014 11:10

drakonium wrote:

Added all the garage albums I didn't know to my listening queue, thanks! :D

Sure thing! Hope you like them. 😄

Re: BEA ULL #7: NickVolos

drakonium — Sat, 3 May 2014 05:26:02 GMT

Author: drakonium

Posted: 05/03/2014 09:26

Added all the garage albums I didn't know to my listening queue, thanks! 😁

Re: BEA ULL #7: NickVolos

NickVolos — Fri, 2 May 2014 18:10:16 GMT

Author: NickVolos

Posted: 05/02/2014 22:10

Saturday May 3rd 2014 01:05 am

When the music was young…

Had a blast today going over some great 60’s garage music. Pretty much everything that I listed to was grand, innocent, intoxicating, invigorating…Wow, this is what rock 'n' roll used to sound like… I love it. Here is my complete listening log:

Troggs, The - From Nowhere
Q65 - Revolution
Music Machine, The - (Turn On) The Music Machine
Remains, The - The Remains
Stooges, The - The Stooges
Monks - Black Monk Time
Blues Magoos - Psychedelic Lollipop
Flamin' Groovies - Flamingo

---------------------------------
Pohjola, Pekka - Harakka Bialoipokku
Tonton Macoute - Tonton Macoute

Like I said, everything was a stand-out, but if I had to pick one or two I would go with Blues Magoos’ Psychedelic Lollipop and Music Machine’s (Turn On) The Music Machine. Both possibly not as acclaimed and/or known as Black Monk Time and The Stooges for instance, nevertheless I seemed to identify more with them somehow. Anyway, I am planning on listening to some more of that stuff and wrap this listening adventure tomorrow. Have a good one. 😄

Re: BEA ULL #7: NickVolos

NickVolos — Fri, 2 May 2014 07:42:04 GMT

Author: NickVolos

Posted: 05/02/2014 11:42

Friday May 2nd 2014 02:40 pm

Time flies when you are having fun…

Friday is already here and yet another week comes to a fast close… Like they say, "time flies when you are having fun"…

Starting the day with one of yesterday's highlights:

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Harakka Bialoipokku by Pekka Pohjola

The albums starts with Alku, an abstract solo piano piece that immediately brings you into a a relaxing yet uneasy, strange mood. The song moves fast into Ensimmainen aamu, the 2nd track, an upbeat jazzy song with an extravagant clarinet solo reminiscing Zappa’s Son Of Mr. Green Genes. By the 3rd track the order has been restored to that of the opening track: slow - almost deathly-sounding - piano chords creeping aside of cello strings and an electric bass accenting the rhythm making room for more clarinet solos. The pace is picked up again with a folky melody playing towards the end of the track. Happiness at last…This is what ...ja nakee unta feels like, the 4th track; an upbeat, jazzy, danceable and funny folky song. Sekoilu seestyy, the 6th track, is an exquisite piece of music with an amazing guitar solo and a Fender Rhodes backing. The interchange of jazzy-folky themes and the interplay between slow and fast tempos continue throughout the album. Also, no lyrics throughout the album, which makes it easier to listen to it considering that Pekka is a Finn. All in all, this is a great find…

As far as for today's musical adventure, I will be listening to some garage rock 1st listens. See you all later on to wrap this day's log...

Re: BEA ULL #7: NickVolos

NickVolos — Thu, 1 May 2014 19:15:09 GMT

Author: NickVolos

Posted: 05/01/2014 23:15

Friday May 2nd 2014 02:00 am

Switching gears…

Had an interesting day listening to jazz-infested rock music or rock-infested jazz-rock or whatever it is called… This time focused in the 70’s. As the usual daily routine, all were first listens. With the exception of 15-60-75’s Jimmy Bell's Still In Town, which is great blues rock with jazz leanings, the rest of the selections were prog-rock. The highlight of the day was Tonton Macoute’s eponymous one and only release, which reminded me a lot of Indian Summer and Cressida, both great, mostly unknown bands from the same era. The music is melodic, complex and incorporates a diverse palette of sounds from saxes to flutes and from vibraphones to pianos.

Both Pekka Pohjola’s Harakka Bialoipokku and Kvartetten Som Sprängde's a Kattvals are excellent records: the former a mixture of jazz, Scandinavian folk and prog-rock; the latter more of a jam band psychedelic rock with jazz inclinations. Magma’s eponymous first release is a good album but falls short compared to their other releases plus is a bit two long (a double LP). This is the complete list:

15-60-75 - Jimmy Bell's Still In Town
Manfred Mann Chapter Three - Manfred Mann Chapter Three
Wigwam - Being
Kvartetten Som Sprängde - Kattvals
Tonton Macoute - Tonton Macoute
Pohjola, Pekka - Harakka Bialoipokku
Magma - Magma
----------------------------------------------------------
Karate - Unsolved
Sea And The Cake, The - Nassau

Will be switching gears tomorrow to something different, possibly listening to some garage rock, garage rock revival, or power pop – will see….

Re: BEA ULL #7: NickVolos

NickVolos — Thu, 1 May 2014 11:17:00 GMT

Author: NickVolos

Posted: 05/01/2014 15:17

Norman Bates wrote:

Nassau's great, if you've never heard any Sea And Cake album before, I suggest One Bedroom and Everybody. I am yet to listen to The Fawn, but everywhere I've seen it mentioned it had a great reputation.

Thanks Norman. Yes, jotted them down - was curious in the first place what their other stuff sounded like. Anyway, good job on your The Happy Few.... chart; noticed you had an entry for Nassau there... 😄

Re: BEA ULL #7: NickVolos

Norman Bates — Thu, 1 May 2014 09:42:54 GMT

Author: Norman Bates

Posted: 05/01/2014 13:42

Nassau's great, if you've never heard any Sea And Cake album before, I suggest One Bedroom and Everybody. I am yet to listen to The Fawn, but everywhere I've seen it mentioned it had a great reputation.

Re: BEA ULL #7: NickVolos

NickVolos — Thu, 1 May 2014 08:05:52 GMT

Author: NickVolos

Posted: 05/01/2014 12:05

Thursday May !st 2014 03:00 pm

Nassau…

As usual my listening day starts with a cup of tea or coffee and a re-listen of last day’s highlight. Today is no different. A fresh cup of coffee and Sea And The Cake’s Nassau playing:

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Nassau by The Sea And Cake

Currently on Parasol, the 2nd track: Clean jazzy overdubbed guitars, wailing harmonies, violins, a tight rhythm section, a melancholy in the singer’s vocals. The song ends quietly as the 3rd track, - A Man Who Never Sees A Pretty Girl He Doesn't Love Her A Little - is mixed in. An instrumental track that showcases confident playing ability. This is a great find, a record that sounds sometimes like The Go-Betweens and others like R.E.M., yet its jazzy inclinations and its post-rock leanings sets it apart from anything that these groups have done. Anyway, I will be wrapping this log somewhere around here as I am getting ready to go on an afternoon walk. Will come back later on to log about this magnificent day's music adventure. See you all then. 😄

Re: BEA ULL #7: NickVolos

NickVolos — Wed, 30 Apr 2014 19:23:07 GMT

Author: NickVolos

Posted: 04/30/2014 23:23

Thursday May !st 2014 02:15 am

Great day in paradise…

Well, here we go again with this never-ending play with time as a new day sets in, here in paradise… Because you know better than anyone that living with music by your side is like being in paradise, or so they say… But let’s get down to this business of logging: My musical adventures into 90’s/00’s rock-based jazz rock comes to a close with a good note mainly because of Sea And The Cake’s Nassau and Phish’s Junta (1989). The former is indie rock with elements of post rock, while the latter has more of a jam band improvisation approach to it. Both are excellent. From the rest, Guillaume Perret & the Electric Epic is sax-based jazz fusion, an excellent release just not in the context that I was looking for. The same can be said for D.F.A’s 4th. Finally both Soul Coughing’s Ruby Vroom and Naked City’s Radio are strong and very unique albums but again not exactly what I was looking for. Here is the complete list:

Phish - Junta
Naked City - Radio
Sea And The Cake, The - Nassau
D.F.A. - 4th
Perret , Guillaume & the Electric Epic - Guillaume Perret & the Electric Epic
Soul Coughing - Ruby Vroom

---------------------------
Karate - Unsolved

As far as tomorrow goes, I am planning on wrapping this adventure by digging a bit more on to 70’s non-fusion jazz rock. Have fun in paradise... 😄

Re: BEA ULL #7: NickVolos

NickVolos — Wed, 30 Apr 2014 08:59:36 GMT

Author: NickVolos

Posted: 04/30/2014 12:59

Wednesday April 30th 2014 03:45 am

Tomorrow is today and it is a glorious day…

Another day here and the weather conditions seem to have been restored: a glorious sunny day. Tempted to listen to Tim Buckley’s Morning Glory but it is not morning anymore and its lyrics are a bit out of context… plus it would be out of context regarding my musical pursuits of the day… Started with a detailed track-by-track listen on my favorite find these days Karate’s Unsolved and placed it gloriously on my overall at # 51 together with other great albums such as Marquee Moon, Remain In Light, Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain, What's Going On, Exile On Main Street, Bon Iver, … This kind of tells me how much I love this album…

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Unsolved by Karate

Decided that for the rest of the day I will continue my pursuit of 90’s/00’s era rock-infested jazz rock. Will see where that gets me…Yesterday kind of made me realize that there is no wasted day in Musicland; even if you don't find that holly grail of an album that you are looking for...Every listen is a win. Anyway, enough of this Greek philosophy... 😄 Hopefully will come back at the end of this musical day to write a small summary of my findings. See you all then...

Re: BEA ULL #7: NickVolos

NickVolos — Wed, 30 Apr 2014 08:29:47 GMT

Author: NickVolos

Posted: 04/30/2014 12:29

latenighttv wrote:

Couple of '90s albums you might be interested in

Hey, Thanks for the suggestions - added them to my listening queue. 😄

Re: BEA ULL #7: NickVolos

latenighttv — Tue, 29 Apr 2014 21:02:48 GMT

Author: latenighttv

Posted: 04/30/2014 01:02

NickVolos wrote:

Not sure what tomorrow’s listening day looks like; my first thought is to try to rectify the day today by pursuing more 90’s and 00’s rock-based jazz rock. If anyone has any suggestions let me know.

Couple of '90s albums you might be interested in

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Link

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Nest by LiR

Re: BEA ULL #7: NickVolos

NickVolos — Tue, 29 Apr 2014 19:17:27 GMT

Author: NickVolos

Posted: 04/29/2014 23:17

Wednesday April 30th 2014 02:05 am

Anyway, tomorrow is another day…

Well, another musical day draws to a close as it crosses over to tomorrow... Listened to about 7 new albums – my usual daily average. Unfortunately most of them were uneventful. Only 2 generated some excitement: Uoma by Uzva - a Finish group, which blends reasonably well jazz and folk and Rhythm, Chord & Melody by Reign of Kindo which combines piano-based jazz with pop/rock. Adult by Tokyo Jihen was an interesting listen more a J-pop album than jazz rock though.

Morphine - Good
Tokyo Jihen - Adult
Phish - A Picture of Nectar
Motorpsycho & Jaga Jazzist Horns - In the Fishtank 10
Estradasphere - Palace of Mirrors
Uzva - Uoma
Reign of Kindo, The - Rhythm, Chord & Melody

--------------------------------------------
Karate - Unsolved

Not sure what tomorrow’s listening day looks like; my first thought is to try to rectify the day today by pursuing more 90’s and 00’s rock-based jazz rock. If anyone has any suggestions let me know. Another thought is to explore more of the rock-based jazz rock of 70’s – there is a plethora of unknown German bands that did this extremely well in that period. Anyway, tomorrow is another day…

Re: BEA ULL #7: NickVolos

NickVolos — Tue, 29 Apr 2014 10:47:45 GMT

Author: NickVolos

Posted: 04/29/2014 14:47

creator wrote:

How did you feel about Pyramid Electric Co.? I've been trying to buy a copy for a long time; it definitely needs a reissue.

Hmm...difficult to say and I won't do justice to it after just one listen... One thing I can say though is that it is pretty heavy, quite depressing and that it does leave its mark on you at the end...and all that without getting into the lyrics...

Re: BEA ULL #7: NickVolos

creator — Tue, 29 Apr 2014 09:55:14 GMT

Author: creator

Posted: 04/29/2014 13:55

How did you feel about Pyramid Electric Co.? I've been trying to buy a copy for a long time; it definitely needs a reissue.

Re: BEA ULL #7: NickVolos

NickVolos — Tue, 29 Apr 2014 09:46:33 GMT

Author: NickVolos

Posted: 04/29/2014 13:46

Tuesday April 29th 2014 04:20 pm

Switching gears...

Karate’s Unsolved provided what I needed to switch gears and genres into something more upbeat and positive. I will be exploring some of the most recent jazz-rock records released in the 90’s and 00’s that are geared more towards rock than jazz, hopefully with vocals participating and avoid any of the fusion-based jazz rock. Anyway, will start with this one:

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Rhythm, Chord & Melody by The Reign Of Kindo

Sounds okay so far - kind of what I am looking for... 😄

Will come back at the end of the day to wrap today’s musical adventure. See you all then.

Re: BEA ULL #7: NickVolos

NickVolos — Tue, 29 Apr 2014 07:00:40 GMT

Author: NickVolos

Posted: 04/29/2014 11:00

Tuesday April 29th 2014 01:55 pm

Breaking through the clouds…

It is amazing how much our psychology is linked to the weather... Living in a country where the sun shines 5 or 6 days a week it is hard to deal with rainy, cloudy days although they do have their own charm. Anyway, enough of this morning-afternoon philosophy… It is time to enjoy a cup of tea on a brand new day that is trying hard to break through the clouds. Throw in yesterday’s musical discovery and ponder about the rest of the day…

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Unsolved by Karate

The album begins with “Small Fries”: shifting, clean guitar notes, pounding bass and soft drum cymbals. The guitar continues its jazzy, soft lament as the vocals set in:

“…But you can't evict the sun
It shines on one hour
Every morning
Every day..”

Quite appropriate at the moment... 😄

Re: BEA ULL #7: NickVolos

NickVolos — Tue, 29 Apr 2014 06:52:08 GMT

Author: NickVolos

Posted: 04/29/2014 10:52

Norman Bates wrote:

You didn't like [i]Geek the Girl ? Although I'm not sure about it being slowcore, I think it's a masterpiece.

I did. 😁 Great album, highly recommended, although not an easy listen by any means... Definitely, crosses over many genres, singer-songwriter and dream pop among others.